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There is definitely a trend of tech bros 1831'ing biology. While it is very annoying, I do think we should try to be more charitable in how we respond to them.

There is definitely a trend of tech bros 1831'ing biology. While it is very annoying, I do think we should try to be more charitable in how we respond to them. It's ultimately a good thing that other people are interested in what we are doing.

vikramkr 6y ago
I agree. Maybe I've just gotten jaded from the usual responses I get when trying to talk about biology with tech people (where they just assume it's over their head and want painful analogies to "simplify" it for them) that it's a bit of a breath of fresh air to see people try to engage with it. Even if they're wrong, well, so was I about basically everything when I took bio 101. It's a way to have those assumptions challenged and learn more. If they arent open to it and are operating in bad faith, c'est la vie, peoplle gonna be like that, but if people are approaching fields they dont know in good faith, then it's a first step.
- throwaway6575 6y ago
  I mean, people being wrong about biology is ok, the issue is when the discussion devolves into some of the touchier subjects and suddenly everyone larps as a scientist. "Do you have citations for that?" "There is a widely accepted consensus that..." "It's not just my opinion, it's science." This is very strange because in technology threads where actual experts chime in, no one acts like that. People share their experiences about using such-and-such stack, sometimes with very strongly worded and passionate opinions but never with the pretense of scolarship or "quest for truth". Imagine how bewildering it'd be if people cited publications from "The Journal of Serverless Stacks" (IF=1.4) in lieu of experience sharing.
  - daemonk 6y ago
    Yes. It takes a lot of time for concepts in biology to sink in and become interconnected mentally. People who are not in the field tend to think about concepts in isolation. Tech people also tend to think more mechanistically/rigidly because they are used to things obeying rules/code. I agree that it can be annoying when armchair biologists make hollow arguments. But I also do think that we do share some responsibility to not turn people off completely or make them dig in harder in their positions.
1123581321 6y ago
What is 1831?
- daemonk 6y ago
  I was referring the XKCD #1831 comic the previous post linked to. https://xkcd.com/1831/ https://xkcd.com/1831/
  - 1123581321 6y ago
    Thanks. The numbers in those URLs didn’t register with me. I like the idea of verbing them!

vikramkr 6y ago

I agree. Maybe I've just gotten jaded from the usual responses I get when trying to talk about biology with tech people (where they just assume it's over their head and want painful analogies to "simplify" it for them) that it's a bit of a breath of fresh air to see people try to engage with it. Even if they're wrong, well, so was I about basically everything when I took bio 101. It's a way to have those assumptions challenged and learn more. If they arent open to it and are operating in bad faith, c'est la vie, peoplle gonna be like that, but if people are approaching fields they dont know in good faith, then it's a first step.

throwaway6575 6y ago
I mean, people being wrong about biology is ok, the issue is when the discussion devolves into some of the touchier subjects and suddenly everyone larps as a scientist. "Do you have citations for that?" "There is a widely accepted consensus that..." "It's not just my opinion, it's science." This is very strange because in technology threads where actual experts chime in, no one acts like that. People share their experiences about using such-and-such stack, sometimes with very strongly worded and passionate opinions but never with the pretense of scolarship or "quest for truth". Imagine how bewildering it'd be if people cited publications from "The Journal of Serverless Stacks" (IF=1.4) in lieu of experience sharing.
- daemonk 6y ago
  Yes. It takes a lot of time for concepts in biology to sink in and become interconnected mentally. People who are not in the field tend to think about concepts in isolation. Tech people also tend to think more mechanistically/rigidly because they are used to things obeying rules/code. I agree that it can be annoying when armchair biologists make hollow arguments. But I also do think that we do share some responsibility to not turn people off completely or make them dig in harder in their positions.

1123581321 6y ago

What is 1831?

daemonk 6y ago
I was referring the XKCD #1831 comic the previous post linked to. https://xkcd.com/1831/ https://xkcd.com/1831/
- 1123581321 6y ago
  Thanks. The numbers in those URLs didn’t register with me. I like the idea of verbing them!